Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Mahmoud Khalil’s refusal to condemn Hamas shows he “clearly” endorses the terrorist group’s actions.
Khalil, a pro-Palestinian activist detained and released by the Trump administration, declined to say if he opposes Hamas on Tuesday, saying he does not support “selective condemnation.” In response, Noem said Hamas’s charter has demonstrated targeting the Jewish population “for years,” and Khalil had an opportunity to let the nation know “exactly” where he stands on the Gaza conflict.
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“He didn’t because of the actions he’s taken in the past, and because he clearly doesn’t want to draw that line between himself and that terrorist organization. So these are the individuals that make it so dangerous right now in this country,” Noem said on Fox News’s Hannity Tuesday.
Noem said the Trump administration is targeting “people who committed crimes in this country,” and people who support Hamas should not remain in the United States. She added that people who sympathize with Hamas should not have the “privilege” of receiving visas.
Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) also rebuked Khalil’s non-answer in whether he condemns Hamas, asking on X why “so many Democrats” are “falling over themselves to support him?”
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Homeland Security assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin similarly condemned Khalil’s statement on X, saying he declined three times to denounce Hamas.
“This should be the easiest question in the world,” McLaughlin said on X.
Khalil is suing the Trump administration for $20 million in damages after he was held at a Louisiana detention center for 104 days. Khalil’s detainment occurred as the administration was cracking down on college protests supporting Palestine.